“If a boss ordered everyone to come to work in a pink tutu and bunny slippers and someone started praising the order as if it were the greatest thing since sliced bread, that would be ass kissing.”

The other kind of so-called ass-kissing is often wrongly described as such. It is my opinion that genuinely nice people get along easily with others, no matter if it is people you can get something from or not. Inevitably, people will notice at some point that you are nice and they will also want to give some of that back to you. Why would you condemn somebody, who benefits from that? Would you condemn a person for being randomly and generally nice at work, school, uni, private life or any other environment. I would not. Others, as a matter of fact, many do. They speak of these people as ruthless ass-kissers whereas in reality they are only envious.
Thinking of some who are wrongly accused of being ass-kissers, we can ask ourselves the question, why is there this second type of ass-kissers, who does not do it for a particular reason. Is this person simply nuts, stupid or irrational? Moreover, why does not everyone act that way just for friendliness’s sake?

Being actively nice to others requires you to be happy. Getting something back eventually for being nice is a logical consequence. People are nice to others for many reasons, I suppose that the following are some:

1. They value other people and want to be valued likewise
2. They enjoy human contact more rather than loneliness
3. They are genuinely interested in others and also express this openly

Analysing the mentioned reasons a friend, colleague or stranger is likely to develop a sympathy, rather than without conversation or openness. Genuinety of those creates a situation of comfort which evens the way for a less superficial relationship. The same phenomenon we can observe when with a not to well-acquainted friend a special moment is shared or something special is being discussed. Something that you would not tell anybody just as if it was the weather forecast. If you tell this person you actually value him/her a lot for his loyality and honesty. If the other person is surprised because he/she would have never expected that because you just don’t speak about this usually, then this phenomenon just happened. And what you feel afterwards is a somewhat deeper relationship that connects you more than it did before. Comfort. Intimacy. However, maybe I’m wrong but maybe not.

People with the ability to be truly interested in others and who are nice, simply enjoy speaking with people, those have definitely freed themselves from the chains of the imaginary and yet strange pressure of today’s society. Today, as soon as you are nice to a person of whom you could benefit in some way from you will be condemn as a ass-kissers. A liar, a ruthless bastard. Not always but more often than not.

If you are one of those type two ass-kissers, let me tell you, it is just about right what you do. From politeness and friendliness only more of that can grow. Whether it is your boss at work, teacher, lecturer, coach, friend or uncle it can only be the right. It resembles Karma, what goes around comes around. It is not ass-kissing, it is, in fact, not being a complete idiot, hiding yourself and hope something good will come falling from the sky. If you think so I hope something hard will hit you from the sky that makes you realise that.

Don’t kiss asses but enjoy human contact with all your conversations, calls, emails. Let curiosity guide you. One way or another, it will get you further and you will feel happy with yourself.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mh9cG5dzs-U

Nonetheless, only a couple of days back I was struck by a fault in my way of thinking or more clearly another angle from which one could look at the industry. Marketing is key for progress. Marketing is challenge to sell your product best which results in improving technologies due to more investment into research and development. Take for example TVs, there are dozens of brands for TVs, Sony, Samsung, LG, Philips and the list could go on. In the 60s when they first became popular they broadcast in black and white, were big, unhandy and somewhat uncanny too. Now, they are only as thick as thumb and do more than all computers did altogether back in the day. This only happened with extensive research, development, innovation, reinvention of technologies and most importantly through demand. This is only possible if a company has money, which it receives from customers who buy the products and only buy them if they know that it exists. With enough cash a company will create demand by all means of marketing, radio, TV, newspapers and internet. Therefore you need advertising, mind-blowing advertising. Subsequently, having solely R&D in a company will not be sufficient any more these days. Fierce competition in the market is ubiquitous. Few are driving invention, many copy-cats exist. And still, nobody will notice your product no matter how good it is unless you advertise it. This also applies to washing machines which revolutionized households enormously, food production and many other areas.

Basically, what I am saying is that such essential industries which depend on marketing drive invention largely in many areas. Marketing is necessary to create “want”, generate revenue and followingly subsidise innovation. It is not only an evil industry that has caused a consumer society that is to be blamed for everything bad in this world. Marketing is as important an industry as technology, engineering and manufacturing. It is a catalyst for innovation and indispensable.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R2bLNkCqpuY

The first day at work, I arrived with Converse shoes, a t-shirt and some casual jeans. That had to change, it was one of many things to come, I still own my Converse shoes but also a heap of shirts, some suits, shoes, cuff links and a tie. I adapted. My internship ended last Friday, nine months with an overload of the world’s beauty. Parties, people, exhibitions, concerts, food, extraordinary! I came to the best city of the world with the innocent age of 19 so that for the rest of my life everything would be compared to this Petri dish of great people, their dreams and their lives. A DJ, journalist, banker or bar tender you name it. A place that makes travelling obsolete because people escape to London to discover and fulfil themselves.

This city also bears some rather fascinating facets that statistically speaking cannot happen that easily. Coming from a village with only 3000 living souls I found that it is indeed sometimes easier to run into people you know in London than anywhere else. I met a Spanish friend who was on her way home waiting for the coach at Liverpool St station on my way home. Amongst hundreds I spotted her. Another case, I was in Bank station, left a pub and ran into a Russian guy who was on his way back to Malta, this man was a participant of the same debating course I went to, I saw him in the middle of London’s underground, what are the odds? 7 million people, yet such things happen. Magical.

The magic changed me, if it hadn’t I would be disappointed, I learnt a lot about other people’s cultures, South America, Korea, France, Australia, Ireland, I made good friends with all of them. The Swiss people I met here were great too, the so-called Röstigraben does not exist for me. It should never, anywhere. Speaking to people is a gift. It is free and can be illuminating, just overcome your unjustified fear and start randomly speaking with strangers in pubs, clubs, parks. I love pubs, not for the drinks (not only) but because it is the place where people of all ages celebrate, discuss and spend time beyond the grey, monotonous, pile of papers at work to find out what really matters. It should be people after all, not your telly that shape your leisure time. I am happy I experienced London as I did, challenges were there and I mastered them as well as I could, if I failed I just as well learnt a lesson which might be worth even more.

Tonight, however, I have arrived at a point that I knew would come but I never would have wanted to come during my time here earlier. This point is when I start to miss home and want to go back to say hello, hug my family and laugh again with them. I am happy to go back. There are things I will most certainly miss but for now I am eager to deeply breath in the fresh air of Switzerland, put my feet back on Swiss soil, commute on reliable public transport, enjoy pressure-rich showers, quality super-market food and many other treasures of this little country in the heart of Europe.

This has been the first of many great times to come, I am hungry, hungry for more, I tasted the tempting sweet of multiculturalism and the joy of exploring the unknown in the ununravellable streets of big cities and the rest of the world. I need a break, though, focus on studies, enjoy life, recharge and then I will strive for more adventures. Carpe diem is written all over my smiling face, the world is there and it is treasure chest. It is a great time to be alive. Things only a realistic optimist could say.

I will fly back tomorrow, sleep, relax, unwind, rest, find my routine. I urge, however, everyone who reads this blog, his and her friends and all the people they know to endeavour to see what the world has to offer. A gap year, exchange term abroad, au-pair or an internship are worthwhile opportunities to broaden your horizon. Sometimes people think they are happy with what they have without having the faintest idea of how much happier they could be. Do not be lazy! You will never find out how happy you can be, unless you make the effort to find out. Go out, have a look at the rest of the world to find out and become who you are.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-DJblHzEdLw

Once, in the fishbar at the end of Brick Lane with my two Swiss friends we sat there and sipped our bowl of Moijto. One of my friends enjoys the series, the other hates it, because he is usually the guy who gets excluded when we talk about it. There we were, high fived at some point and said that their visit to London will be legendary. A girl opposite noticed us doing that and asked if we were fans of the TV-series. We talked with that girl and her friend and spent the rest of the night having great fun.

Another time, in Starbucks, Charing Cross. I was sitting there at the window watching the people and writing in my little black book when suddenly a girl next to me started talking to me and we speak about London, its greatness, its diversity, its party-life. We also spoke about how we learned English so well, because we both spoke it rather well. I explained that by watching TV-series which I loved I improved tremendously and BAM, HIMYM! There it is again! We spoke for half an hour or so about how cool it is. As my girlfriend arrived to meet me for dinner we said good-bye, she was one of many strangers who I met and had a great chat with just by having this series in common. My girlfriend too, she likes the series and everyone I recommended it as well. It’s ubiquitous, people love it and people like to talk about things they love. It’s simply connecting people!

HIMYM is just legend….wait for it…….dary!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gbAgmD3Mo90

I already finished half my marketing internship here in London and I was able to gain insights, experience and ideas which are crucial for planning my future. My future is uncertain but flooded with options. Fortunately, I found out that I am not the only person thinking of what to do. Two of my workmates just finished their bachelor degree last summer and invest a lot of time now in finding their right master program. GMAT, IELTS, TOEFL, rankings, fees are criteria which need to be checked and rechecked until in the end an application with all the information about you and preferably some recommendations are sent to universities across Europe. Afterwards they only can wait and hope. Also one of my flatmates, a master student from Austria, is in between his time-consuming master thesis and a start-up company. Once you enter the real work-life, you quickly forget about grades and a face much larger challenge. Real responsibility. Until the end of your studies everything seems to have a clear direction: bachelor, master and internships and the like. And what then? Something real big starts. It is as if you fought your way on a giant ship, through all decks to the steering wheel and you will need to take it from there yourself. You need to seize the opportunity and make your way into the future. If you want you can make it a bright and promising one. You make the decisions, be target-oriented and do not under any circumstances drift into nowhere because that would make the entire effort you made, from the lowest deck to the captain’s chair a huge waste of time.

There is a saying in German with smiths and how they forge their own luck. I think “Man forges his own destiny.” is what English people would say. It is invaluably helpful for me to see people making their decisions and be able to ask them questions. In London in particular I come across many people who are about to take their life in their own hands. These impressions are indispensable even though I do not always notice them consciously. It shapes your plans, rules out some options, shows you where you might go and where not. In the end it broadens one’s mind and a distant dream emerges on the horizon and becomes an achievable goal which you can pursue. If you are persistent enough then at some point you will find the way through the sea of options life has given you and you will realise it is not just useless lemons, it is what you make it. A dream can come true even if at first it is far away, the further you sail the more it becomes a goal, in the end you will have a plan and your dream comes true.

And do not worry if you do not succeed at first, we all get lost every once in a while, especially on such a large ship as life. Luckily, you will always find friendly people who are happy to listen to you, to help you and to bring you back on the right way.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cbD2cZG9R6E

But, unfortunately, we cannot achieve all our goals no matter how much effort we put in. Some succeed in more things than others. And there are many of us thinking they are not successful or not as successful as they are supposed to be. Society enslaves us and puts us in cages where we need to fit in as something we are not. Just like little hamsters we run and run and end up at the same place we started. Our efforts are doomed to fail because we are just not made for it. People like that sometimes see themselves as losers and I quite frankly believe, that all of us thought of themselves as underachievers or losers one time or another. This particularly happens as we get older. To all those who think they are LOSERS, I say that “NO”, you can change.

I got to know myself and know many things I am not talented at. I am not a musician neither can I sing, I am also no athlete or a craftsman. I learnt that I am not good at sports because I played and never reached more than average. I was mediocre. I thought I was a loser because I wanted to be better at it. Friends of mine who play music always made me feel envious because I could not play and I always thought I have to play too and when I tried I failed terribly. It takes a great deal of time and practice and even then you may not reach a level beyond average. It can also be at work, every day we try to sell, present and impress and it sometimes just does not work. We see ourselves as failures and feel bad. There are people walking around and thinking that they are not good at what they do. Losers.

I say that everybody can be a WINNER.  The issue is that we always think we need to be good at what others tell us to be good at. Consciously or subconsciously our environment shapes us and so our goals in life are defined by others. When you are surrounded by prodigious musicians you will feel the need to play music or see yourself as a failure otherwise. In your job the same applies, you think you want/need to be good at something whereas it’s only that other people expect that from you. Often parents push their kids in a direction and when a child is being told to be a doctor or lawyer it will inevitably always think of being that and if not it will see itself as a loser. Open your mind and try new things. There are so many great people getting up every morning and heading towards a pointless, unhappy life. These so-called losers who sometimes walk around for decades of their lives just have not yet FOUND what they could be succeeding in. Anyone can find that particular thing he is good at. Basically, it is a process of trial and error. Try a job, hobby, anything and see if it is what you are good at.

THAT is the only thing that distinguished losers from winners. I have my thirst for knowledge and people say I’m a smart guy. As I said, I am not good at sports, working with tools or making music but I can talk. I can talk about things. I can’t sew but I can persuade, I can’t run but I can convince, I can’t throw but I can understand, I can’t play guitar but I can conceive, I can’t saw but I can argue.

My mind is the tool I need to sharpen. Questions which I ask are the right ones, that is what I think, as of now at least, is what I need to do. I will try and who knows maybe I will succeed.

As I said, sometimes it takes a lot of time to find the right thing, sometimes it’s less but UNDOUBTEDLY everyone can find it and be a WINNER.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tY5WxDqggbs

In the olden days when media and subsequently advertising was not as ubiquitous and as manipulative people would just be dissatisfied and helpless to find a way around. (I guess, since I never lived in the olden days).  Fortunately, the US introduced consumerism and a throw-away way of life after World War II. They pushed the economy and laid the foundations for today’s world. This, however, opened a way of self-reward for those people who did not receive it by others. Nowadays, it is simple. If, for instance, you do not get what you want at work today you have a solution. If you do not get the praise for your contribution at work by receiving a bonus, promotion or round of applause then you can go and buy satisfaction.

Numerous locations conveniently accessible for all of us who feel the need to buy them satisfaction are available, especially in Oxford Street. Hugo Boss, HMV, H&M, Apple, Swarovski, Ted Baker, Ray Ban, GAP, Tommy Hilfiger, Sony, UGG, and many, many, many more offer you rewards someone else missed to give you. Every price range available, all credit cards accepted, open during the whole week.

Anyhow, Oxford Street is the perfect place for that and still I do resist buying things which I have no use for. Some sort of realisation that I do not need it and just want to buy it for a reason other than actual use.

I honestly admit that I also have bought things in my life I didn’t need just because I wanted it so badly but did not need it at all effectively. But now, at a not too mature age, I thankfully have already understood that there is no real point in all that. It will not solve any problem. It is only short-term happiness and satisfaction. Solutions must be found elsewhere.

People should fight for the appreciation of their work. It is one thing to boast but it is another to make people appreciate what you have achieved and speak about it proudly. This might prove to be difficult but it is the only right and genuine way to feel better in the long run. So, you would only need to go to Oxford Street if you truly needed something.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OAun4Klpew4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C-7s8HbHIew

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LT579_Nrnqo

Once a company is successful it probably has well-known products. Examples are Apple iPods, Coca-Cola, Dyson and many more. I want to focus on Apple for a moment. Do you really know what an iPod is? It’s a thing that plays the music from iTunes and stuff, right? Apple succeeds in making its product names synonymous to the original device. A lot of people don’t know the difference between an iPod and a MP3-Player. And no matter how long they try to find out the difference, they don’t come up with something. And the reason is that there is no difference. iPods are one specific branded product of MP3-Players, no more, no less. But some would even say they bought and iPod kind of thing when it’s in fact just an MP3-Player. The same is now happening to smart-phones. Ever since Apple has introduced their iPhone it more and more becomes a synonym for a smart-phone. People even asked me what kind of iPhone I have there, when I only had another touch screen mobile phone. Apple does a great job there and every company that accomplishes what Apple has accomplished with their brand can be extremely proud of itself. It takes a lot to make your product name a synonym to the product itself. Think about others who could not achieve this so far. No one talks about Vaios, Pavillions, ThinkPads. It’s either you have a MacBook or something else.

Another example is Google. To google has became synonym to doing an internet search. It’s even noted in certain dictionaries. All you need is Google; it’s as if Google was the internet. There are lots of products which people only know the product name and can’t remember what the actual product is.

There is even a Wikipedia article about generised products. Which contains the following list:

* Aspirin, originally a trademark of Bayer AG
* Butterscotch, originally a trademark of Parkinsons
* Escalator, originally a trademark of Otis Elevator Company[4][5][6]
* Heroin, originally a trademark of Bayer
* Kerosene, originally a trademark of Abraham Gesner
* Phillips-head screw, named after Henry F. Phillips
* Pogo for the toy Pogo stick[6][7]
* Thermos, originally a trademark of Thermos GmbH
* Tipp-Ex, originally a trademark of German manufacturers Tipp-Ex GmbH & Co. KG
* Yo-yo, originally a trademark of Duncan Yo-Yo Company
* Zipper, originally a trademark of B.F. Goodrich[6][8]

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genericized_trademark

And here is another article about the same topic:

http://inventors.about.com/b/2006/01/29/when-a-brand-name-becomes-generic-genericized-trademarks.htm

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Ih7HZpCaA0

Education is the key and gladly in most western countries it is a matter of highest importance. You may be complaining about your school or university but that is just peanuts compared to the problems other societies are facing. While you complain that a letter has arrived with your name misspelled, people in other countries try to acquire new books and a classroom which is equipped at least with some usable furniture. Furthermore, no company is looking for people with skills. The reason is, that such companies neither can afford nor have the money to implement ideas of innovative people. What would be the point in employing such a person? The system is a vicious cycle. Young people do not get sufficient education and have no motivation since there is no perspective for them even though they may hold a master’s degree in a scientific discipline. Trust me this is not a situation you want to be in. I assume you live somewhere in Western Europe or the U.S., where education belongs to the foundation of a functional society.

If you are intelligent and/or willing to learn take the opportunity and get yourself to the next level. Achieve something. Be a maker. And always think of people who would wish to have the chance you have. Do not just take it all for granted since it’s absolutely not.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K71MckOTt1M

As funny as this sentence sounds which came up in my mind a few weeks back, it bears an important meaning to our everyday lives. I kept thinking about it and the more I thought about it the more I realised that it is very true.

We are surrounded by many people, at work, school, home and elsewhere. We also have friends. What kind of friends do we have? What are they like? Are they like you? Well, in my case I made a little discovery. When you think about your closest friends you either see that they are very like-minded or that they’re not. For me, my best friends are very different on all kinds of things. Nonetheless, we have certain stuff in common which connects us. You probably think now, what’s the point of the sentence at the beginning then or what’s the point at all? I am just getting closer to it. Think about a moment in your life when you were totally new in an environment. For example you entered a new study programme or started a new job. Loads of unknown people are in a room as you enter. As a new part of this community you will have to find your place. What is the first thing you do? I would say you check all people out and motion towards those who appear to be like you. Or probably people that are the way you would like to be.

At first you only expected to be accepted in the group as a part of them. Once you joined a group of people that have seemingly the same interests and opinions as you do successfully, you will start to make new friends. As time passes by you will get to know each other better and better. This will prove if  you were right or wrong at first glance. You will automatically stay with those people who share interests in order to establish a conversation. Someone may be just like you and shares your views or the person may be totally different. Normally, you would stick to those that are like you. Because you can talk to those people and get to know them. Even though it might be only small talk. Usually, you won’t stay with people that are totally different. Because no conversation, jokes or anything of that sort would develop from ordinary small talk. Later you will see that even someone who has tons of things in common with you will have different views on some things at some point. That’s completely normal. As you get to know people better you will see their flaws, background and realise you are not the same. That’s when friends start to broaden your mind and you start to discuss, argue and have fun. Those are moments when a friendship start to grow between people. We can’t have the exact same views on everything. We are different and those differences will surface sooner or later. Everything else would be very creepy and I would try to find out if he or she is a spy, stalker, illuminati or from outer space.

No matter how you meet someone, most of us will probably not even remember how they met some of their best friends, it is important that at first we were very alike. Then it turned out that those people we later call friends, have other opinions too. But still, they are our friends. Every friendship starts with a shared interest, style, opinion at a place where you meet for a reason. And yes, that’s basically everywhere. So, friends can be made everywhere and true friends will overcome even the biggest disputes about interests, styles and opinions.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZHmsVRshwU